Nightmares, Love, & War
by dancerox1997
Summary: Tessa moves to England after graduating high school & lives with Nate, who's always in & out because of his jobs. She keeps getting nightmares about demons chasing her & thinks she's delusional when it becomes reality. Will is having dreams of a girl running from demons & doesn't want to sleep because of it. He thinks something is really happening. Will the dreams come true? Read!
1. The Nightmares Never Stop

**Hey guys! I just want you to know that I'm really enjoying writing this story, but please R&R so I know what to change or add! :) I will try and post often, maybe once or twice a week depending on my work load at school. Please enjoy the story! Xoxo!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the main characters in this story! (Tessa, Will, Jem, etc.) They belong to Cassandra Clare! :)**

**_Part 1: The Nightmares Never Stop ~ Tessa_**

_Tessa Gray was bolting down the wet streets of London completely terrified. She knew she had to find a place to hide. The sky above was pitch black, the clouds concealing what little sliver of moon there was. It was pouring down rain and wind whistled all around her, creating a biting chill in the air._

_Tessa's dark brown hair was flying behind her in wet strands, the wind whipping around and hitting her in the face. Tears were pouring down her dirt-stained cheeks, the warmth and saltiness of them mixing with the cold, fresh raindrops._

_As she ran, she frantically looked over her shoulder to see if it was following her. Her hair was getting in the way, though, and it was making it hard for her to see. Suddenly, she slipped on a patch of mud and went tumbling toward the cement below her. She landed hard on her elbows and knees, and the shock of the impact spread through her body. The sound of her jeans ripping at the knees tore through the air._

Come on, Tessa, you need to get up. It's coming after you!_ A voice in her head shouted at her._

_Tessa tried with all her might to push herself up from the ground, but she couldn't move. She collapsed, rolling on her back, sobs wracking her body violently._

_She heard a terrible screeching noise above her. Her eyes flew open and she saw the worm-like thing torpedo down toward her, its mouth agape as it descended upon her head. Before it could reach her, she smelled the foulness of its breath; like rotten meat mixed with curdled milk._

_And then its barbed teeth pierced her skin and everything went black._

Tessa awoke with a start. She sat straight up in her bed, drenched in cold sweat and her heart racing a million miles a minute. She looked across her room into her mirror; her wavy brown hair was a ratted nest around her head, her steel-grey doe-eyes now wide and frenetic, her nightgown twisted, and her white sheets tangled around her body

"Holy crap," she gasped. "It was just a bad dream, Tess. It was just a bad dream."

No matter how many times she repeated this mantra to herself, though, she knew she was telling herself a lie. She had been having dreams like this every night for the past month, since she came to London from New York City.

Lately, however, she had been feeling like these dreams were less like nightmares and more like a reality both day in and day out. Just yesterday she was at work at the bookstore down the block from her apartment. She had glanced up from behind the checkout counter and swore she saw a person standing there, watching her, a forked tongue flickering through its—their?—teeth. It put her on edge the rest of the day.

Just last week, walking home from getting a cup of coffee, she could swear she saw the worm-like monster lurking in the shadows in an alleyway. She nearly screamed and had run the rest of the way to her apartment.

The week before that, two women—one short and plump, the other tall and rail-thin—both with talon-like hands, stopped her on the side of the street on the way to work. They had pulled Tessa into a dark alley, hissing to her that she "belonged to them" and that they worked with Nate. Tessa heard them refer to each other as "Mrs. Black" and "Mrs. Dark". As they were bickering to each about who would bring her to "the Magister", Tessa bolted and ducked into a highly populated coffee shop.

Now, Tessa leaned over to her bedside table and flipped on her lamp. The dark had long since begun to terrify her. She no longer felt safe anywhere she went, even if she was among a large crowd of people.

She fell back against her pillows. She wished Nate, her brother, could witness these night terrors. She knew he could calm her down. Unfortunately for her, though, Nate was always in and out because of his job. He was a businessman for Mortmain Parts Inc. and was always going away to do business for Mr. Mortmain.

Tessa had met Mr. Axel Mortmain a few times upon Nate's insistence. The first time had been a few hours after her arrival in London. She remembered Mr. Mortmain as a short, bald man. He didn't seem very intimidating by appearance but Tessa got a feeling whenever she was around him that the man was very powerful. She knew that Nate knew that and that's why Nate was such a loyal worker for Mortmain.

She reflected back to when she first got to London. She had just graduated from Manhattan High School. Her Aunt Harriett and Nate had both been there when she delivered her graduation speech. A week later, her Aunt Harriett had suffered a fatal heart attack, and Tessa, wanting to be somewhere where her last living relative lived, had asked Nate if she could live with him. He accepted, of course, and they bought her a plane ticket. She packed up all of her things, which wasn't much, and hopped on a plan to London. Nate had greeted her at the gates, and off she went to his apartment with three suitcases of clothing and three suitcases filled with books.

She recalled Mortmain telling her if she ever needed her brother, just to call either Nate or himself. She was curious about that now. Mortmain _had_ always taken such a keen interest in Tessa…

Before Tessa could think anymore, she reached over to her dresser and picked up her cell phone. She dialed Nate's number, but there was no answer. She sighed, desperate now, and dialed Mortmain's number.

"Axel Mortmain speaking," he barked into the phone.

Tessa took a deep, shaky breath. "Mr. Mortmain, this is Theresa Gray, Nathaniel Gray's sister. Is Nate around by any chance? I need to speak with him. It's urgent."

**_Part 2: Will_**

William Herondale sat at his desk in his bedroom reading _The Great Expectations_ by Charles Dickens. It was well past midnight and yet he was having trouble sleeping, despite the exhaustion his body and mind were feeling. He knew he desperately needed a good night's sleep, but he hadn't slept in days.

Perhaps it was because of the dreams he kept having of a certain young woman? Will kept having these terrible dreams where a beautiful young woman with frightened gray eyes and wavy brown hair is running for her life away from… something. It always ended the same way: she falls and the demon catches her.

Will shook his head to clear the images from his mind. He tried to focus once again on the book he was reading, but he couldn't stay focused for long. He felt his eyes drooping, and he rested his head on his desk. He quickly fell asleep.

_In Will's dream, he saw the young woman rush out of a book store, ducking her head to avoid the rain. She walked quickly down the block and stopped at an apartment building. Will could hear a whispering voice talk to her, and she froze._

"_Come with us, young one. The Magister wants to speak with you. He has Nate. We know you've wanted to speak with him about the nightmares you've been having," the voice hissed. Then it cackled—a long, throaty laugh._

_The girl stepped back from the apartment building and peered into an alley adjacent to the building. It was too dark outside to see anything. Suddenly, the all-too familiar worm-like thing leaped out at her and she screamed. She started running._

_And she kept running._

_But she fell, and Will knew this was the end of it._

_Something was different, though. She picked herself back up and kept running. She rounded a corner, and Will recognized the road she was on. She was running on the docks of the slums of Thames. __It was only a couple of streets away from the Institute. _She took another turn, but it was a wrong turn. She ran into an alley to hide.

_She thought she was safe._

Run!_ Will could hear himself thinking. Why couldn't she hear him?_

_But the demon found her._

Will sprang to his feet, and instantly regretted doing so. All the blood rushed from his head and his vision went black momentarily. He gripped the desk until the dizziness passed.

He stretched out, feeling the effects of sleeping hunched over in all the wrong ways. He frowned when he saw the sunlight streaming through the window.

He'd slept most of the night?

He glanced down at his phone charging on the desk beside the spot he'd just been sleeping. It was eleven o'clock in the morning. The others were probably getting worried about him.

Will gathered his shower items and clothes to go take a shower. As the water ran over his body, he couldn't help but feel freaked out by the nightmare he kept having.

_Is someone trying to tell me something?_ He couldn't help but think. Will stepped out of the shower and got dressed.

"No, it's just my mind playing tricks on me. Like I could ever get my panties twisted over the girl of my dreams." He chuckled at his own joke and went downstairs to eat something because, by the Angel, a teenage boy needs to eat!

Will strolled into the kitchen after checking to see that no one was in the dining along with no food. Will both saw and heard the cook dancing and singing along to the radio while preparing the next meal.

Will cleared his throat. "Bonnie?"

Bonnie jumped and spun around, holding a knife out in front of her. When she saw it was Will, she placed a hand over her heart and lowered the knife. "Mr. Will," she gasped in her Russian accent. "You startled me!"

Will smirked. "I didn't mean to startle you, Bonnie. I was just coming to ask if you had anything I could eat."

Bonnie raised an eyebrow; she'd always appreciated Will's appearance, but had never been too fond of his attitude and his lack of thankfulness. "Where were you during breakfast time, Mr. Will?"

Will rubbed the back of his neck. "I overslept," was all he said.

Bonnie turned toward the pantry and searched the shelves for a few moments, her plump figure struggling a bit. A moment later, she pulled out some Pop Tarts and handed them to Will, which he took gratefully.

"Thank you, Bonnie." She nodded in his direction and turned her attention back on the meal she was preparing. Will spun on his heel to head down the hallway when he saw his _parabatai_, James Carstairs.

"Jem!" he called out, a grin breaking across his face.

Jem beamed. "Will! Where were you at breakfast?" As Jem got closer, he got a better look at Will.

"I overslept, I guess," Will admitted.

"You guess? Well you look much more rested than you have been lately. Have the dreams stopped? The ones about that girl?"

Will looked over at his friend, meeting his gaze with somber eyes. "No, Jem. I still get them every night."


	2. Dreams Come True

Chapter 2

**It will contain all the characters from the original TID, just more modern and plenty of plot twists! Here is the second chapter! I know it's long, but I had a lot to get to and it all sounded right to fit it all into one chapter! Please R&R or PM me! Xoxo! :)**

**I will try and post as often as I can! I know this chapter has a cliffhanger and I'm sorry for that but another chapter will be up soon! :p **

**I DO NOT OWN MOST OF THE CHARACTERS! They belong to Cassandra Clare. **

_**Part 1: Dreams Come True ~ Tessa**_

Tessa was at work the next day, feeling jumpy and skittish. She was more than a little shaken up by her phone call with Mortmain. When he heard it was her calling, he'd laughed a sinister laugh, and it gave her chills down to the bone. She thought of the conversation they'd had.

"_Axel Mortmain speaking," he snapped on the other end._

_Tessa inhaled sharply. "Mr. Mortmain, this is Theresa Gray, Nathaniel Gray's sister. Is Nate around by any chance? I need to speak with him. It's urgent."_

_He laughed coldly and it sounded like metal gears grinding together. It made her shiver. "Tessa, your brother is away on business right now. What is it you need his assistance for?"_

_Tessa bit her lip. "Mr. Mortmain, please. Some strange things have been happening to me since he left a week ago. I know he can help calm me down. Just please let me speak with him." She knew she sounded desperate, but it was only because she _was_ desperate. She needed help._

_Mortmain laughed again. "Miss Tessa, I don't think I can do that for you. He's… not exactly available at the moment."_

_Tessa's heart rate accelerated. "What do you mean he isn't available? What is he doing?"_

"_You said strange things have been happening to you?" he wondered. She heard a disturbing amount of curiosity in his voice._

_She hesitated. "Yes," she responded slowly, cautiously._

"_So I see you've been receiving my surprises, yes?"_

"_Surprises? What do you mean?" This conversation was beginning to freak Tessa out more than she already was._

"_Oh, you know, the reptilian demon in the bookstore, the Dark Sisters, the worm…" his voice trailed off, leaving it to Tessa to put the pieces together._

"_Demon?! What are you talking about? Demons don't exist!" she half-yelled._

_Mortmain laughed that laugh again. "Everything you're seeing is _real._ You have _the sight_. We want you, Tessa, and we're going to have you."_

_Tessa's eyes darted around the room, as if she could find a way out of the conversation. "You're never going to 'have me', Mortmain. I don't belong to anyone. As for this 'sight' that you speak of, I have no idea what you're talking about." She gnashed her teeth together in frustration. She just wanted to talk to her damn brother! Why was that so much to ask for?_

"_Tessa, I've poisoned your mind," he ridiculed. "You are having those nightmares because you've seen these things before, you just don't remember them. You were much too young to remember…"_

"_No! I don't believe you, Mortmain!" She shouted._

_Mortmain cackled. "Believe what you'd like, Miss Gray. Just remember we have your brother…"_

_The line went dead. Tessa sat there in a panic and unsure of what to do next._

"Excuse me!" a voice exclaimed.

Tessa snapped out of her reverie. She had been staring at her book, lost in thought, and hadn't even noticed the customer that had approached the counter.

"I'm sorry, it's been a long day," she apologized in a rather monotone voice. She rang up the customer's purchases, forcing back a frown at the selection: _A Mundane's Guide to Identifying Demons, How to Summon Demons, A Beginner's Guide to Potions, _and _The Myths Are Real_.

"Your total comes to twenty-two dollars and thirty-one cents," she said, accepting the cash from the customer. "Your cash back will be one dollar and sixty-nine cents." She handed the change back, raising her eyes as she did so. She gasped at what she saw. The "customer" she thought had been standing before her had skin green and slick-looking with dark spots all over it, like a toad. Its tongue rolled out of its mouth, licking its lips and blinking at Tessa, but the eyelids closed together just like a reptile.

She stood, frozen in fright. It did something of a wink, took its purchases, and walked out of the store.

"Tessa, are you okay? You look like you've just seen a ghost," Amber, a coworker of Tessa's, said.

Tessa looked over at Amber, her white-blonde hair glowing like a halo under the dim lighting. "Uh, Amber, I need to go. Are you okay if I take off early? I'm not feeling well."

Amber's blue eyes roamed over Tessa through her wire-frame glasses worriedly. "Yeah, go ahead, Tess. I can cover your shift. I'll see you later, right?" Amber smiled.

Tess attempted a small smile back. "Yeah, I'll see you later." She gathered her things and left quickly.

She felt like she couldn't breathe. What was that thing? She had almost _touched_ it.

She didn't know, but she did know that she had to get out of there, and _fast._ She had to get out of that apartment as quickly as possible. She ran the short block to Nate's apartment, up the stairs, and burst through the door.

Tessa rushed to her room, grabbed two suitcases, and tried to fit as much of her clothes in there as possible. She managed most of her clothes to fit in them. She started grabbing her most favorite books off her shelves—_The Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, _and a few other classics—to stuff in on top of her clothes, her laptop, phone chargers, make up, a flat iron, and some jewelry. The suitcases were crammed to their limit, and Tessa knew she had to leave the remainder of her belongings behind.

She sighed, tears welling up in her eyes. She grabbed a piece of paper from her desk and pen to write a note to Nate. She wrote:

_Dear Nate,_

_I'm sorry for leaving, but some weird things have been happening to me. I tried to call you, but I couldn't get a hold of you. I tried Mortmain, but he really freaked me out and wouldn't let me talk to you._

_Again, I'm really sorry for leaving. I appreciate you flying me here, but I'm just not happy here as it is, and I feel like I'm going crazy. I'm headed home, wherever that may be, in New York. I can go to college there._

_I'll call when I get there._

_I promise._

_I love you,_

_Tessie_

Tessa capped the pen and left the note on her desk. She started to pick up her suitcases, realizing how heavy they were, when she heard a pounding at her front door.

She froze. Nobody knew she lived here. She went over to the bedroom window and opened it, gently setting her suitcases out on the fire escape, out of sight of the window. Then, quietly, she walked back over to the bedroom door, cracking it slightly to see if anyone would come in.

'Come in' wasn't the correct term. They burst in, kicking down the door. Tessa jumped at the cracking noises. When the dust settled, she saw two familiar figures. One was short and plump, Mrs. Black, and the other was tall and thin, Mrs. Dark. They were standing in the doorway.

"Miss Tessa! We know you are here!" Mrs. Black yelled. Tessa heard one of them inhale deeply. "We smell you!"

Both of the women stepped inside, observing the apartment. Behind them, Tessa spotted a large… worm-like monster.

A hand flew to her mouth. _This is not happening_, she thought. She quickly turned and went to the window, climbing out of it and shutting it as quietly as possible behind her. She grabbed her bags and started to make her way down the fire escape as quickly as she could.

It wasn't easy, though, because the metal stairs were wet and the suitcases were fairly heavy. She had just reached the bottom of the second flight when she heard a screeching from above. She heard Mrs. Black demanding for her to come out from hiding.

Tessa glanced over the railing of the fire escape and saw she only had one flight left to go, so she heaved her suitcases up and over, dropping them over the side and momentarily forgetting about her valuable belongings. They landed loudly in the mud below, and she hurled herself down the rest of the stairs.

Her heart was pounding in her head when she reached the bottom. She grabbed her bags and tried to run as fast as she could with them. She didn't know how far she could go, and it was getting dark outside and it was raining.

With her suitcases trailing behind her, she threw a glance over her shoulder as she rounded the corner, and the ground beneath her turned into slick wood as she entered the slums of Thames. The monster and the sisters were just now emerging from the apartment building, furiously glancing around the streets for her.

Tessa turned back around, focusing on the road in front of her. The wind that tore down the streets ripped through her hair, tossing it around and lashing her in the face. Panic started to set in as she recognized the scene she was in was just like her dreams.

But it wasn't just recognition she felt. She also felt something like… recollection.

Mortmain's voice rang through her head. _"You are having those nightmares because you've seen these things before, you just don't remember them. You were much too young to remember…"_

A memory hit her full force, and Tessa stopped abruptly in the middle of the road.

_ It was dark and stormy; much like it was just then. Tessa ran outside the house she grew up in to see her mom. She was crying; she didn't want her mom to leave._

_ "Mommy!" Little Tessa cried out. She watched as her mom turned at the end of the sidewalk. Her mother had tears in her eyes, her dark hair billowing all around her._

_ "Tessie, please go inside. I'll be back soon. I love you so much! With all my heart, and please don't forget that," her mother called._

_ Little Tessa continued to cry and raced down the sidewalk to her mother. "Mommy, please don't leave me," she whimpered._

_ Her mother wrapped her in her arms. "I'll be back, Tessie. I love you. Now go back inside, okay? The weather is dangerous."_

_ Little Tessa touched her mom's face, and her gray eyes softened when she looked at her daughter. "I love you, mommy. I'll miss you." With that, she obeyed her mother and turned to go back inside._

_ Just as she reached the door, she turned one last time to see her mother. She was smiling and waving to Tess. Tessa was about to go inside when she heard her mother scream; it was a bloodcurdling scream._

_ "Mommy!" Tessa screamed as she whipped back around to see a giant worm-like creature descend upon her mother. Tears streamed down her face, but she was frozen in fear as her mother looked at her one last time._

_ "Tessie, run! I love you!"_

_ An orange-haired boy, who appeared to be a teenager, ran outside the house with a glowing blade. Little Tessa recognized him as her babysitter, Henry. Henry looked down at her, then reached down and picked her up, setting her inside the house._

_ "Tessie, stay in here and _don't_ come out," he demanded. Tessa knew from the tone in his voice this was serious._

_ She shut the door behind him and ran to the front window, watching as Henry fought off the worm creature. She saw her mother lying on the ground, blood spilling from her abdomen. It made Little Tessa cry harder when she saw her mother wasn't moving._

_ And her mother never moved again._

Tessa was brought back to reality as the memory faded away. Tears were pouring down her cheeks and she was gasping for air. She couldn't remember why she was standing in the middle of the street, on some docks in the slums of the Thames River.

The memory of the worm reminded her she was running away from the Dark Sisters and the worm-creature. She thought, out of the blue, how no one had stopped to help her. Did no one see the thing that was chasing her? Tessa glanced behind her and she took off running again. She caught a glimpse of the worm rounding the corner, noticeably sniffing around for her scent. She could tell it had no eyes, but a keen sense of smell.

Tessa was terrified. She was about to relive her mother's death as her own. Her arms were starting to feel more like lead, and her bags suddenly felt like they contained bricks instead of common necessities.

Tessa's foot slipped in a patch of mud, and her bags went skidding in front of her as she fell toward the uneven ground below her. Just like in her nightmare, she landed on her elbows and knees, but she hit the side of her head too.

She gasped at the throbbing that instantly went through her body. She tried to push herself up, but her limbs went limp.

_No,_ she demanded herself. _This is not going to happen to me. Not now. I can make it through this._

She raised her eyes and saw, as she was lying on the corner of the street adjacent to the docks, about a quarter mile away, a building that looked like it had burned down.

_ Maybe if I can get there, I can hide._

The longer she stared at the burned down building, it evolved into a tall building with gothic spires rising up into the sky.

_A church! _She though ecstatically. _They will help me!_

As she was finding the strength to lift herself back up, the worm creature latched its teeth around her ankle. Tessa collapsed again and screamed, kicking and thrashing about to get it to let go. Tessa felt the pain in her ankle start to spread, and she knew instantly the thing was poisonous. She twisted herself around, knowing it was shredding the skin on her ankle.

"No! Let go of me!" she screamed. She kicked the thing in between where the eyes should have been. It must have been in shock because it released her momentarily, slimy liquid dripping out of its mouth and down her pant leg.

She seized the opportunity and scrambled to her feet. She almost fell again from the indescribable pain in her ankle. She glanced down briefly, seeing how it had already swollen twice its original size. She shivered at the sight of so much blood but limped as quickly as she could toward her bags.

Tessa knew the creature couldn't see, so she gripped her bags and made a zigzag pathway toward the church. Behind her, she could hear it sniffling. She could also hear the Dark Sisters screeching some distance away, but gaining distance on her. She knew she had to move quicker.

The aching spread upward toward her thigh now, and her leg was becoming less and less mobile. She pushed herself harder and harder. _Only a few hundred feet more! Come on, Tessa!_

She was almost there, but so were the creature and the Dark Sisters. The throbbing now burrowed itself in her hips, spreading down to her other leg.

Tessa could almost touch the entrance of the church. If she could just go a little bit further…

The weight of her suitcases was too much for her to handle at this point. She set them down to reach up and unlatch the gate. She picked them up and then dropped them again just as she reached the inside of the gates and bolted as quickly as she could to the doors.

She didn't have much time to take it all in. She was in panic mode and needed help _immediately_. She started pounding on the door, not knowing what else to do.

"Help me! Please! Someone help me!" she screamed as loudly as she could. She banged harder and louder, this time with both fists. She couldn't stand on her legs much longer. They were beginning to lock up. "Please help me! Please! They're coming after me! They're so close!"

The door swung open and Tessa fell into the doorway, but right into someone that caught her. Under normal circumstances she would've been embarrassed and apologized, but she was in a state of paranoia. She looked up at the person who'd caught her.

She was in the arms of a tall boy, probably the same age as her. He had unruly hair the shade of black licorice and eyes violently blue with long eyelashes. His face was elegant but all angles, with a strong jaw and chin, and sharp cheekbones. He had full, soft-looking lips, and his skin was a pale pallor.

At first, his face held an expression of pure shock, but it melted into a smirk. "Well, if I'd known that women were going to physically throw themselves into my arms, I would've better prepared myself with something a little more ravishing than a plain t-shirt," he remarked.

"William! This poor girl needs help!" a woman scolded. Tessa looked over at her. She was small, much smaller than Tessa, with long brown hair and brown eyes that held years of wisdom. As young as she looked, Tessa could tell she had a powerful personality.

Tessa, who was beginning to feel blackness pulling at the edges of her mind, didn't have time to mess around at this point. "You have to help me," she whimpered. "Please." The pain was unbearable now and she couldn't move anything.

The last thing Tessa's mind registered was her body going limp in the boy's arms before the blackness completely washed over her.


	3. The Girl Of My Dreams

Chapter 3

Will ~ The Girl Of My Dreams

**Hey guys! So here's chapter 3! :) Please R&R! I'd really like to keep writing this story so please follow or review or something so I know you're interested! :) If I made any spelling/grammatical errors, I'm sorry, and please ignore them as best as you can! :)**

**Also, I'm going to start introducing characters from TMI and probably the characters we know of from TDA (Cassie's new series to be released in 2015).**

**Thank you for taking your time to read this story! It means a lot to me! :)**

**Xoxo!**

**Disclaimer: I (sadly) don't own most of the characters—they belong to Miss Cassandra Clare! However, the plot is mine. :) Enjoy!**

Will looked down at the unconscious girl in his arms in complete disbelief. Was his mind actually playing tricks on him or was he really holding the girl he'd been dreaming about?

Will tried to talk himself out of the nonsense and looked at Charlotte. "Look, Charlotte! I told you I make women swoon. I'm not surprised she fainted at the sight of my beauty," he exclaimed arrogantly.

Charlotte was glaring at him in horror. "No, Will, she fainted because of _that_!" She remarked, pointing at the girl's ankle.

Will glanced down and cringed. The girl's ankle was bleeding profusely. The skin was completely shredded, and there were several puncture holes around her ankle. Will frowned. "Charlotte, what are-"

Jem, his _parabatai_, yelled, interrupting Will. "Will! Look, it's a demon inside the gates!" He shouted, panic clear in his silver eyes.

Will glanced up from the girl and into the courtyard, seeing that Jem was right. Right inside the gates of the Institute was the worm demon he'd seen in his dream. He turned to Charlotte, where Sophie, their maid, had now joined them. He handed the girl over to the two of them.

"You two take her and get her help as quickly as possible. Me and Jem will go out there. Oh, and fetch Henry, will you?"

Charlotte sighed. "Yes, Will, now go!"

Will nodded at Jem before the two of them ran out of the doors of the Institute, slamming the doors shut after them. Will pulled a seraph blade out from his weapons belt, as he had just finished training, and named it. The blade lit up, and Will charged at the demon. The demon was coming toward him, catching his scent.

Will approached it from the side, knowing it had no eyes, and stabbed it right in the side, making a deep incision in the slimy surface of the skin. The demon screeched and whipped itself around. Before Will could make another move, a pair of claws latched itself around his wrist. Will turned, raising his seraph blade.

"Bring us the girl and no one gets hurt," the Warlock demanded. Will grimaced at the sight before him. The Warlock was hideous, short and plump, with dark hair piled on top of her head and grey, leathery-looking skin.

Will cackled. "You think I'm afraid of a bloody Warlock? You look like a grandmother who replaced her skin with that of an elephant."

Another woman, taller and thinner, but with the same dark hair and wrinkled skin, appeared beside the short one. "William Herondale, hand over Miss Gray and we'll spare you your little friend," the tall one snapped.

Will's brows furrowed. "Will!" Jem called from behind him. Will looked over his left shoulder and saw the demon had wrapped it's tail around Jem's legs, slowly slithering itself around him until he was completely immobile.

That angered Will, and set him into motion. He brought his seraph blade down on the plump woman's hand, nearly severing it entirely, and elbowed the tall one in the jaw. He raced toward Jem, swinging his blade and bringing it down on the worm's tail. The tail was dismembered, and the stub left squirted Ichor blood from it's wound, spraying the two boys. The acidity of it instantly disintegrated the fabric on their bodies. The demon dissolved into a pile of dust and disappeared into thin air.

The tail around Jem loosened itself before that, too, disappeared. Jem stood before his partner covered in slime and what was left of his clothing. He grinned triumphantly at Will.

Will grinned back before spinning to go after the two women, who had seemingly fled the scene.

"Ha!" Will laughed and looked back at his partner. "I guess they didn't want to fight after they saw my beautiful face. But then again, who would want to harm this sculpted masterpiece?" He gestured at his body.

But Jem didn't look so sure. His eyes widened and focused on something behind Will. Will was about to turn when he heard another voice call out:

"Will! Jem! Duck for cover!"

They both knew it was Henry and another one of his crazy inventions, so the two boys ducked and seconds later, there was an explosion.

Will glanced up and saw a flash of orange hair run toward the taller of the two women, who was trying to pick herself back up from the explosion. The short one was nowhere in sight. Will got up and went to defend Henry, and Jem followed suit.

In a matter of seconds, the tall woman was beheaded, with the head rolling out of the gates of the Institute. The woman's body vaporized into the air.

The three men looked at each other.

"Well, I suppose the fat one has learned her lesson and left," Will pointed out with a shrug.

"Who was pounding on the door like their life depended on it? It rather disturbed my work," Henry said.

"Her life did depend on it. She's in bad condition. Sophie and Charlotte took her to the infirmary to help her," Jem explained. "By the way, what was that explosion? What did you do?"

Henry smiled with pride. "That, my friend, is my new invention. It's designed to stick to something, a wall, human, or any other object, and then explode seconds after impact. I didn't think it would actually work, but I had to try it sometime where Charlotte wouldn't think it to be preposterous."

Will laughed and patted Henry on the back as they made their way back to the Institute. "Well done, Henry. You saved the day."

Henry beamed. Out of the corner of his eye, Will noticed two square-shaped objects inside the gates. He frowned, walking over to them, and noticed that they were two suitcases, one black and one blue. He presumed them to be the injured girl's, and picked them up.

"William, I see you've found the girl's luggage. Well done. How far do you think she's been running with those bags? They look only slightly heavy," Jem said.

Will looked at Jem gravely, trying to sound as serious as possible. "James, that woman in there is the girl I've been dreaming about. I know the area she ran from. It's not too far from here, but someone so delicate looking shouldn't be able to carry these so far. She probably had a lot of adrenaline running through her."

Jem raised his eyebrows. "Will, are you sure that's her? Maybe it's just a girl who looks like her."

"No, Jem, that's her. How much more proof do you need than my dreams becoming a reality?" Will questioned.

Jem gave his partner a half smile and shrugged, and then turned around and followed Henry through the doors of the Institute. Will sighed and shook his head. How much more convincing would he have to do if even his best friend doesn't believe it?

Later that evening, after dinner had passed, Will decided to go check in on the girl. What had those women called her? Miss Gray?

Will left his bedroom and strolled through the winding corridors down to the infirmary, where Sophie and Charlotte were permanent fixtures to the room, tending to Miss Gray.

Will approached them slowly. "Charlotte?" he said softly. Charlotte turned around, raising her eyebrows at the sight of Will. He stopped a few feet from her tiny figure. He was always astonished at the height difference between the two of them; him being a staggering six-foot-two and her barely five-foot.

"Will, I must admit I am quite surprised at your appearance in here. What can I help you with?" she asked.

"I just want to see the girl. How is she doing?" he inquired, gently brushing past Charlotte to stand at the foot of the bed.

The sight was not pretty. The girl was lying in the bed, her chocolate brown hair fanned out on the pillow, her skin as pale as alabaster. Will could see the veins through her eyelids and on the backs of her hands. Sophie and Charlotte had manage to clean her up well, but her injuries were another story. She had an IV hooked up to her, and a monitor beside the bed was reflecting her pulse, which was slower than a normal person's should've been.

A thin sheet covered her torso, revealing all of her wounds. Her elbows and knees were completely black and blue, her nails chipped and bleeding. Her ankle was wrapped multiple times in gauze, but both of her legs were swollen and beet red.

"She's not in good condition. I don't know what kind of demon that was, but I've never seen something like that. A good three inches of her skin, all around her ankle, was unsalvageable. She probably tried to twist her ankle out of its mouth. It resulted in several puncture wounds and severed arteries. Sophie and I were able to do surgery on it, so the blood flow should be fine," Charlotte explained. Will turned to look at her. Charlotte frowned. "I'm still wondering if we were too late. The venom had spread through her legs and her hips."

Will ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Charlotte, I was thinking about this quite a bit earlier. Only those with Shadowhunter blood can open those gates. She managed to get through them. So shouldn't she have Shadowhunter blood in her? Couldn't you try putting an _iratze_ on her?"

Charlotte thought about this momentarily, putting her finger on her chin. She nodded slowly. "I see what you're saying, Will. I didn't think about that. I was just putting her on standard hospital antibiotics and pain killers for the procedures Sophie and I had done."

Will raised his eyebrows. "Can you try putting an _iratze_ on her then? Please?" he pleaded.

Charlotte looked at him suspiciously. "Will, why does this matter so much to you? You never care about these things."

Will turned his back on her, placing his hands on the bed rail. "Charlotte, I briefly told you of those dreams I was having. This is the girl who was in them. I feel obligated to help her." He glanced over his shoulder at her.

She sighed and stepped forward. "Will, if this doesn't work, we're facing major repercussions."

"It will work," Will insisted.

He watched as Charlotte picked up her stele from the night table beside the bed. She drew an _iratze_ on each of the girl's arms and legs. Silently, Will hoped he was right.

As she was finishing, Henry burst into the room, looking rather excited and waving a paper around in the air. "Lottie, dear, I have a letter from the Enclave regarding your request to pursue De Quincey and—," he stopped mid-sentence, for the first time noticing the girl lying in the bed.

"Henry, what is it you were saying? What did the Enclave say?" Charlotte asked, setting her stele down and reaching for the paper in her husband's hand, but unable to grab hold of it.

But Henry wasn't listening. He slowly walked to the side of the bed. Will watched Henry reach out and touch her cheek.

"Why does she look so familiar? I've seen her before. I just know it," Henry muttered, so quietly Will had to strain to hear it. Henry raised his head and his eyes met Will's. "Did you catch her name?"

Will glanced at Charlotte, who looked just as puzzled as he felt, before turning his attention back on Henry, who was now leaning over the edge of the bed. "Henry, I heard those two women say her name was Miss Gray. I didn't catch her first name," he told Henry.

Henry's head snapped up, his face paling. "Oh no, this can't… this has to be some kind of mistake," he stammered. He reached in his pockets and pulled out his wallet, fumbling through the folds of it before he produced a picture of a young girl.

"Henry, dear, what is it? What's wrong?" Charlotte wondered, stepping toward him.

"It's Tessie. Oh my God, it's really her. I haven't seen Tessa since she was just a little girl. I was still in the New York Institute. I used to babysit her and her older brother, Nate, to make some money," Henry explained. He closed his eyes and shuddered, as if remembering some terrible memory. "She was only five years old when it happened. If only I could've walked out two minutes earlier…" He trailed off.

"What are you talking about?" Will asked.

Henry opened his eyes and looked down at the girl—Tessa—sadly. "Her mother was leaving town and had packed her bags in a cab. She had run back inside to say goodbye to her children. She looked at me and told me to take care of them, and that if anything should happen to her, to take them to their Aunt Harriett. Tessa had chased her mother outside as she left one last time. I watched from the window as she cried and begged her to stay. I felt my heart breaking because I cared for the two of them as if they were my younger siblings. Tessa was running back toward the house when I saw it coming. I saw that demon that was outside of the Institute. I ran outside, pushing Tessa into the house. Had I not taken the precaution of making sure she was inside, her mother would still be alive. As I did that, the demon had caught her ribcage. The venom is extremely poisonous, and spreads quickly. I had to fight it off by myself, and by the time I had killed it, she was far beyond life."

"Henry—," Charlotte started.

"I immediately tried several healing runes on her, because she was a Shadowhunter, but it was too late. I was too late to help her. So I packed up the kids' things and took them to their Aunt Harriett's. I haven't seen them since. Well, at least I haven't seen Tessa until now."

"Henry, I'm sure that's not her," Charlotte reassured him.

"Now that I think about it, she did have an American accent," Will spoke up.

At that moment, Tessa began coughing. Sophie, Will, Charlotte, and Henry all looked at her instantly. Her monitored pulse sped up slightly, up to a normal rate. Her eyes fluttered open, and they immediately fixated themselves on Henry. Her large, storm-grey eyes looked confused for a moment before flashing with recognition.

"Henry," she breathed, and then her eyes closed again, and her pulse slowed once more.

It took Charlotte only a few minutes to become conscious of the fact that Tessa had slipped into a coma.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please remember to review this and (hopefully, if you'd like) follow the story! I will try and have another chapter posted this weekend or early next week. :) For now, xoxo!**


	4. Waking Up

Chapter 4: Waking Up

**Hello again! :) So this chapter is going to be really important to the main characters (Tessa, Will, Henry… you know who I'm talking about). It's going to be bittersweet. Also, lots more characters will be introduced here, and I'm hoping to capture the essence of each individual one as they're presented. If you guys think I need to either tone it down or turn it up on their personalities, let me know! :)**

**If anyone doesn't know what a sphygmomanometer is, it's the instrument used to test blood pressure. If you guys have questions, please PM me!**

**As most of us know, we are back to school this week! :( So during the week it's more challenging for me to post, but on days where I have a lot of free time (considering I get out at 1:45) I'll get chapters out quicker and faster.**

**Thank you so much for reading! Please continue to R&R and follow me! It means the world to me!**

**Much appreciation to: Issi Herondale for PMing me and R&R on my story. I'm reading your 'City of Time' and I absolutely love it! Also, much appreciation to those following my story!**

**Disclaimer: I own none of the following except for the plot. Enjoy! :) Xoxo!**

Part 1~Will

For Will, the two weeks that passed by were excruciatingly slow. He visited Tessa every day, trying to make sense of everything that had happened. Each day that passed, he noticed little things about her appearance on the outside that were changing, things that were noticeably healing. Her bruises had faded, her swollen legs had returned to normal, and the color in her skin had slowly returned.

However, she had yet to wake up from her coma. Her body may have been healed, except her ankle, but her mind wasn't ready to emerge itself back into the real world.

That's where it was confusing Will, and it frustrated him to be confused. He was a smart person, smarter than the average person. He was more literate than most people and read more books than anyone else he'd ever met.

And yet he was confused by something so little.

Two _iratzes _were put on her every day, yet she was still in a coma and her ankle hadn't healed, and her other wounds and injuries had taken days to heal. Shadowhunters were supposed to heal fairly quickly, usually within the hour.

Regardless of the fact that she probably wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for the _iratzes_, and if she was, she wouldn't heal nearly as quickly.

Will was still doing research on what that demon was. So far, he had only found demons that could imitate the movements of a worm and that could shape shift into a worm. But he couldn't find one that matched what he had fought off and had sent back to its original dimension.

Today, Charlotte had asked Will, for the first time, to go and change the bandages on Tessa's ankle because she was doing paperwork for the Institute. Will had been there every time she had changed them before, so he was fairly confident he knew what to do.

When he entered the room, he went over to a tall cabinet on the far side of the room and opened it. He pulled out gauze and some of Charlotte's special homemade ointment, along with some medical tape and scissors. He carefully approached Tessa, noticing something was slightly off about her. He couldn't place a finger on it, so he shrugged it off and set his materials down on the tray beside the bed.

Will reached toward her ankle, gently cutting off the gauze that currently protected the wounds underneath. When he pulled the cloth away, he was surprised. The wounds that had been punctured holes in her skin yesterday were now small scabs, and there were much fewer scabs; the others had healed into scars.

Will frowned, confused at the significant progress she'd made in the last twenty-four hours. She had never healed this much before.

Before Will could ponder this anymore, Tessa's foot flexed, and she drew in a sharp breath. Will's head snapped toward her, looking at her with wide eyes.

Her eyelids fluttered open and her eyes met his instantly. Her brows furrowed. "Who are you?" she croaked. Her voice sounded dry and thick with sleep.

Will, still dumbfounded, picked up the glass of water that seemed to be a permanent accessory to the room and handed it to her. She took it gratefully and drank it quickly, gulping down large mouthfuls. When it was empty, she looked down at the empty glass longingly.

"Would you like some more?" Will asked, seeming to find his voice.

Tessa's grey eyes, which had looked so dark and stormy before she slipped into a coma, flashed gratefully. "Yes, please."

He nodded, taking the glass from her and going to the sink at the back of the room to refill it. He brought it back to her, and she drank about half of it before setting it back down on bedside table.

She leaned back against the pillows. "So, you never answered my question. Who are you?"

Will turned his attention to changing her bandages. "My name is William Herondale. You can call me Will, though. That's what everyone here in the Institute calls me. Well, unless I'm in trouble or someone's angry with me," he told her, smirking. He pulled on a pair of rubber gloves before applying the ointment to the wounds.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Herondale. I'm—," she started.

"Tessa Gray, right? Oh, and please call me Will." Will interrupted. He glanced up at her.

Tessa raised her eyebrows. "How do you know who I am?" she asked, and then seemed to think about it. "You didn't look through my things, did you?"

Will's eyes widened. "No! We would never do so without consent. It's just that someone here knows who you are," he explained to her quickly.

Tessa's mouth opened slightly. "Who is it? I hardly know anyone here in London. I just moved here not too long ago. The only people I associated with were my coworkers and my brother Nate. Oh, and occasionally his coworkers."

Will finished wrapping the gauze and secured the bandage. He peeled the gloves off and tossed them in a nearby trashcan. "You've known him for quite some time. He doesn't think you'll remember him, though. However, you did say his name before you slipped into a coma…" he trailed off.

Her eyes widened. "I was in a _coma_? For how long?" she demanded.

Will cleared his throat. "You were in a coma for about two weeks. You were attacked by a demon, and its venom is extremely poisonous. You got to us just in time for us to help you. By the Angel, we got lucky you have Shadowhunter blood in you."

Tessa's face darkened with confusion. "Demon's don't exist. As for that thing that was chasing me, I'm pretty sure I was hallucinating. And—," she stopped abruptly, something clicking in her head. "_Henry_! That's who you were talking about! Oh my gosh, the last time I saw him… I was so little. The last time I saw him he was dropping me off at my aunt's house with my brother."

Will looked down at his feet. "We know the story of what happened. I'm so—,"

"Take me to see him," she ordered.

Will shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea for you right now. You just woke up after being in a coma for two weeks. I don't think you'll have the strength to, especially with your ankle—,"

Her eyes clouded over. "William, I don't need you to tell me what I can and can't do. I wish to see Henry."

Will sighed. "Why don't I let Charlotte come take a look at you? I'll have her get you cleaned up and then you can come meet everyone since you're feeling up to it. Are you okay with that?"

Tessa settled herself back against the pillows, satisfaction coloring her face. "Very well then." She watched him as he nodded and turned to leave the room. "Oh, and William? Thank you. For taking care of me while I was asleep."

Part 2~Tessa

Tessa sat there for what seemed like an eternity to her. She was staring up at the ceiling. The walls were high, with windows set at the top. The ceiling, though, reached so high that shadows blanketed the top.

Tessa sighed, feeling lonely. What did Will mean by the "demon"? And what kind of blood does she have in her? Shadow Warrior blood? What does that even mean? She was beginning to think what he was saying was true. Hadn't Mortmain mentioned something similar to her, and she had denied it in the same way? Maybe she was trying to convince herself it wasn't true, but in all reality, it was the truth? If two completely different people had given her some form of brief explanation, shouldn't there be some legitimacy in their statements?

Before she could focus too much on what Will had quickly explained, a small woman with dark hair pulled back and soft brown eyes hurried into the room. Her eyes landed on Tessa, and they widened.

"Miss Gray, I see you're awake now," she said, scurrying to the bedside. She grabbed a sphygmomanometer, pulling the Velcro apart and reached for Tessa's arm.

Tessa let her take her arm. "You must be Charlotte," she said. "Will said he would have you come take a look at me."

Charlotte smiled and wrapped the sphygmomanometer around her arm, then pumped air. Tessa felt it tighten around her arm, but she remained completely still.

Charlotte removed the item, placing it back on its rack, and then grabbed a stethoscope. "Yes, I'm Charlotte. You are Tessa Gray, right?"

Tessa nodded, and took deep breaths as Charlotte pressed the stethoscope over her heart, to the right of it, right above it, and over both lungs. Charlotte put that away as well before pressing her hand to Tessa's forehead.

"Well, Miss Gray, you seem just fine to me. You temperature has dropped significantly from its steady 104 degrees, your blood pressure has returned to normal, and your heart seems to be beating at a normal rate. We were quite worried about you. Especially Will. He essentially was the one who saved your life," Charlotte said.

Tessa's mind flashed back to what had happened. The memory was blurry for her, probably because of the coma, but she was managed to recall falling through a doorway into a pair of strong arms that belonged to a certain blue-eyed boy. She remembered her begging them to help her, and then… blackness.

"Miss Gray? Did you hear what I said?" Charlotte asked worriedly.

Tessa was pulled from her trance, her gaze shifting to meet Charlotte's. "I'm sorry, what? I was just thinking about—,"

"Miss Gray, don't worry about what happened. You are safe here, and as long as you are with someone from the Institute, you will continue to stay safe."

"Please, call me Tessa. I think be Christian name sounds a bit too dreary," Tessa responded, smiling a little. "By the way, Charlotte, thank you for taking care of me. I don't understand what's going on here, or why I'm involved, but I sense that there's something much deeper than the surface portrays. For whatever reason, I think I'm a part of it, and I'm going to need your help figuring out who I am, what I am, and why I'm a part of your world."

Charlotte smiled at her. "Don't worry, we will do whatever we can to help you, Tessa," she said.

Tessa was beginning to feel like her old self again once Charlotte had aided her in a bath and typical grooming. She had clipped Tessa's broken nails and helped her scrub her body. Under different circumstances, Tessa would've been embarrassed by this, but she knew that Charlotte had already seen all there was to see, and probably much worse.

As Charlotte was helping Tessa put on a bath robe, a young woman, presumably not much older than Tessa herself, came in. She was wearing a beige cotton dress that fell to her knees and a frilly white apron wrapped around her waist. Tessa was trying to make it discreet she was looking at the girl. As the girl turned her head to look at Charlotte, Tessa fought back a gasp. There was a large silver scar that stretched from her temple down to her jaw. Other than that, Tessa admired the girl's looks, with her olive, clear skin and dark, soft hair that tumbled down in curls down her back.

"Charlotte, Miss Gray's room has been arranged for her," she spoke softly.

Charlotte smiled at the girl. "Thank you, Sophie." Then, upon realizing her mistake, she turned to Tessa. "Tessa, this Sophie Collins, our most loyal and trustworthy housekeeper; Sophie, this is Tessa Gray, our guest."

Sophie extended her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Gray."

Tessa shook her hand and smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you, too."

Sophie led Charlotte and Tessa upstairs and down several hallways before stopping at a door on the right side of the corridor. She opened the door and stepped aside. Charlotte glided gracefully into the room, and Tessa followed her inside.

Tessa was in awe. All the furniture—queen-size bed, two nightstands, a dresser, and an armoire—was made out of ornately carved mahogany. There were thick white blankets and several pillows on the bed, making it look like a marshmallow.

Tessa turned to look at both Charlotte and Sophie. "This is _my_ room?" she wondered.

Charlotte's eyes glinted. "Yes, Tessa, the room is all yours. Sophie has placed your suitcases next to the armoire. She washed all of your clothing and hung them up for you. I hope you don't mind, but we wanted to make you feel as at home as possible."

Tessa was speechless. "Charlotte, surely I can't accept this. I don't know what to say," she said.

"Tessa, don't say anything. Just take it in gratitude and know that it is no inconvenience to us to have you here."

She and Sophie turned to leave, but Charlotte stopped and looked over her shoulder at Tessa, her hand gripping the doorknob. "Oh, and Sophie will return to the room in half an hour to bring you to the drawing room. I want to introduce you to a few people."

After that, Tessa was left standing in the massive room by herself. She collapsed on the bed, finding it more comfortable than she had originally thought. She was already exhausted and longed to take a nap, but part of her feared she would go back into a coma, while another part of her knew she needed to make herself more presentable to meet people.

She crawled off the bed and went into the adjoining bathroom, looking at her reflection. She cringed. She was abnormally pale, even for her, and her face looked rather plain without makeup. Tessa got her makeup bag from one of her suitcases and began applying small amounts; a thin layer of foundation to even out her skin tone, a light eyeshadow to mask the practically transparent eyelids, a few brushes of blush to give herself some color, and a few strokes of mascara. In no time, she looked more like the Tessa she was comfortable with.

Tessa went to the large closet, revealing it was a walk-in, and that all of her clothes hung neatly inside. They were organized by sleeve length. She couldn't help but appreciate Sophie's help.

Tessa picked out a black button-down blouse; it was a sheer fabric had ruffles down the front, so she layered a black camisole underneath. She paired the top with a pair of dark stretchy skinny jeans and black flats.

Tessa walked out of the closet, flipping off the light switch, and caught a glimpse of herself in the vanity mirror.

_Great,_ she thought, _I have to untangle this rat's nest._

She sat down on the bench matching the vanity and picked up a brush. She couldn't fathom the last time it had a thorough brushing. It was still slightly damp, but had been tangled for over two weeks.

As she was in the process of ripping the hairs from her head, she heard a slight knock on the door.

"Come in," she grunted as she was tearing through a giant knot.

"Miss Gray! Please, allow me to help you," Sophie cried and rushed over, taking the brush from Tessa.

"Sophie, please call me Tessa. I don't feel the need for you to use a formality around me. I think of you no less than anyone else." Tessa leaned back and Sophie gently worked through the tangles. Tessa had always greatly enjoyed the feeling of someone brushing her hair, and she felt herself dozing off to the beat of the rhythmic strokes.

"Miss Tessa, you need to wake up, the others are expecting you," Sophie's voice said, breaking through her sleepy haze.

Tessa opened her eyes and saw that her hair was parted neatly and lying smoothly. She looked at Sophie in the mirror. "Thank you, Sophie. My hair hasn't looked this nice in ages."

Sophie smiled softly, her scar seeming to move. "You're welcome, Miss Tessa. Are you sure you want to go meet people? You seem awfully tired. We can always do this again tomorrow. It's not like they have much better to do, anyway."

Tessa nodded and stood up. "I will be fine Sophie, but thank you for your concern. I think it's time for me to meet the people who has so graciously taken me in."

As they walked to the drawing room, Sophie gave a brief explanation of the people Tessa would meet.

"Jessamine wants nothing to do with the Shadowhunting world, but as soon as she finishes her education here at the Institute, she's leaving this world behind. She's sweet, yes, if you're on her good side. If you're not, well, she's not exactly the sweetest grain of sugar in the bag. She's often rude and brutally honest, so be prepared for that.

"You'll also meet Cecily Herondale, William's twin. Cecily is very energetic and enthusiastic. She has a lot of passion and a very kind heart, very unlike her brother. As for Will, he is often angry with the world, and tends to shut people out when he makes a mistake. Once he gets over that, he'll pretend like nothing ever happened. He's quite rude, as a matter of fact. Much worse than anyone in the Institute, but we've all learned to cope with his attitude issues.

They ran out of time for Tessa to learn anything else about the people she'd be meeting when Sophie stopped at a set of double doors. She placed her hands on each handle and nodded over her shoulder at Tessa, which signified she was going to open the doors.

Tessa drew in a deep breath as she and Sophie stepped over the threshold. They stood in a room that had a warm, blazing fire burning in a brick fireplace on the right side of a room, a large desk sitting to the right of it. Outside, the sky was beginning to darken to the blue that crossed between violet and indigo, the shade that told you it was twilight. The several tall windows placed on the wall she was facing let in the light, contrasting the orange glare of the fire. In the middle of the room sat two loveseats facing each other, and one long couch on the end, each side with a small end table. In between the two loveseats was a long glass coffee table.

But Tessa's attention wasn't on the room itself. Her attention was on all the people she was now facing, who had all turned their attention on her and looked at her expectantly.

Tessa blushed, not knowing what to do next. Thankfully, she was saved when a familiar figure with a shock of orange hair ran toward her.

"Tessie, by the Angel, you're alive!" Henry cried, folding her into his arms.

Tessa laughed and wrapped her arms around Henry. "Henry, it's been so long!"

He stepped back, holding her at arm's length and looking her up and down. He shook his head. "My, my, you've grown! I couldn't believe it was actually you when I saw you down in the infirmary. I was terrified you'd never wake up."

Tessa gave him a small smile, trying to memorize his new features. He had more freckles than she remembered and his brown eyes were much warmer and playful now than they had once been. He was taller, too, with slightly more muscle than the teenage boy who used to watch after her.

"Believe it or not, but thirteen years will do a lot to a person," she teased.

Henry laughed, giving her one more hug before turning the both of them to the people crowded in the center of the room. Tessa took in all the faces.

Sitting on the couch facing her was a tall, slender boy with silver hair and silver slanted eyes. His face was soft and all angles. Next to him sat Will, with his tousled raven-black hair and startling blue eyes, and elegant, sharp features. Beside Will was a girl who looked exactly like him. She was squeezed in tightly because they had tried to seat three people in a loveseat. The girl—Cecily, Tessa recalled—had long jet-black hair that fell to her waist and the same brilliant blue eyes, pale pallor, and graceful face.

The long couch seated a boy with long golden-blond hair with eyes the color of his hair. Tessa thought he looked like a lion, and she envied the way he was admiring the girl next to him. The girl seated beside him had curly fire-orange hair that was as long as Cecily's. The ginger looked at her with fierce green eyes, pale skin, and an oval-shaped face.

Beside those two sat another girl with dark brown hair even longer than the other two girls'. Her dark eyes and dark hair reminded Tessa of London's dark demeanor; seated beside her sat a boy with the same dark hair, but with pale blue eyes instead of dark brown. He was giving her a slight dirty look, and the dark haired girl nudged him.

On the couch facing away from her, she saw two girls, both blonde. The one seated on the left had hair curled down her back, but she wasn't looking at Tessa. She was looking down at her nails, inspecting her hands. She didn't seem the slightest bit interested in Tessa's presence.

_That must be Jessamine_, Tessa thought before taking in the appearance of the last girl. She was looking at Tessa rather excitedly, with big ice-blue eyes and blonde hair braided down the length of her back. On the other side of her sat another girl with long black hair, the underside of it died cherry red. She looked like she was admiring Tessa with her big brown eyes.

Tessa suddenly felt self-conscious, much more underdressed than the girls around her and not as much makeup on.

"Tessa, I want you to introduce you to a few people your age. We want you to feel as at home as possible," Henry told her. He started motioning toward each person seated on te couches. "Those two are Cecily and Will Herondale, they're twins. I believe you've already met Will. Next to Will is James Carstairs, but he goes by Jem. Over here we have Jace Herondale and Clarissa Fairchild, but call her Clary, and Isabelle and Alec Lightwood, also twins. And then over here is Jessamine Lovelace, Emma Carstairs, and Cristina Rosales."

Tessa's head was spinning. It was all overwhelming to her, and she couldn't help but wonder if she really had been ready to enter these people's world. Would they even like her? If they didn't, what did that mean for her?

She tried to take in all the greetings she received, keeping a smile intact and shaking hands as they all stood up.

Well, everyone but Will and Jessamine. Jessamine seemed just plain bored, but Will looked disinterested in her presence, and even a slight annoyance. Surprisingly, it hurt Tessa. Why had he tended to her when she was in a coma, but now was acting like he didn't want anything to do with her?

After a few minutes, Tessa caught Emma and Cecily exchanging a look before they both jumped up and grabbed hold of both of her arms. They dragged her further into the room. They plopped her down on an armchair beside one of the love seats. This way, Tessa was now facing everyone. Instinctively, she felt her face heat up.

"Cecily, Tina, I have been so looking forward to you waking up," Emma beamed. Her blue eyes danced with reflections of the fire behind Tessa and her blonde hair was lit orange.

Cecily's eyes sparkled wildly. "Tell us about yourself, Tessa."

Tessa looked down at the dark blue carpet, hesitating on revealing anything about her life. She shrugged. "I'm not sure what you guys want to know."

"Well, I personally don't want to know much," Jessamine piped up, briefly casting Tessa a dirty look. "You're actually quite undeniably plain, if you ask me."

Tessa saw Cristina's face distort into mortification. Tessa couldn't help but feel her heart drop to her stomach. She'd barely said anything to this girl and she already found her boring?

Multiple people said, "Jessie!" It was what Will said that lifted Tessa's spirits slightly.

"Well, it's a good thing she wasn't asking you then, now isn't it?" he snapped.

Tessa raised her eyes, allowing a small smile to creep onto her face. Will glanced at Tessa and winked. Jessamine did not miss this exchange. She glared at Will momentarily, then flipped her hair over her shoulder and looked at Tessa.

"You know, Tessa, that's what surprises me. Will has always gone for the easy women, the pretty ones with revealing outfits. But you… you're nothing like that. I'd hardly consider you pretty, and that outfit is far from revealing. So I'm actually quite curious to know what exactly it is about you that intrigue him so much," she sneered.

Tessa felt blood creep up her neck and into her cheeks. The room suddenly felt a thousand times hotter. When Tessa snuck a glance at Will, she saw that he'd gone pale and was giving Jessamine a dirty look. Then, as if planned, all the boys stood up, told Tessa it was a pleasure, and left.

Isabelle turned to Jessamine, her face beet red. "Jessamine, you _bitch_! You never know when to keep your damn mouth shut! I was beginning to think Will was actually making progress, but now you've gone and royally screwed things up! He will be right back to where he was before she came along," she yelled.

Jessamine yawned. It was clear from the look in her brown eyes how bored she was. She smirked suddenly. "Isn't that half the fun with Will? Everything's a game to him. I don't see how a girl being downstairs in a coma is really going to change him."

It was Clary's turn to get defensive of Will. "Jessamine, _shut up_. You don't understand why her being here meant so much to him! If you spent half as much time listening to what we say as opposed to looking at yourself in the mirror, I'm pretty sure you'd know, in complete detail, what was going on. Isabelle's right. You just ruined all the progress he's made in the last two weeks."

"I haven't known Will for more than a few months, but even I can tell that Tessa's being here has changed his behavior. He looks well-rested, and he has something to look forward to. That's not something we are used to seeing in Will," Cristina admitted quietly.

Tessa cleared her throat. "Guys, I'm still here. I myself am not entirely sure what you guys are speaking of, but I'm sure I'll found out when I'm ready to. As for Will, he seems very sweet. He took care of my ankle this morning."

At this statement, all the girls looked at each other in confusion.

"Are we talking about the handsome black-haired, blue-eyed boy that looks like Cecily?" Emma asked, her blue eyes widening.

Tessa nodded.

Isabelle and Clary leaned back against the coach and moaned in unison.

Emma, Cristina, and Cecily exchanged nervous glances.

Even Jessamine was surprised.

It was silent for a moment. Cecily was the first to speak.

"Maybe those dreams had more of an effect on him than we originally thought," she declared quietly.

**Hello friends! :) How was chapter 4? Please review this for me.**

**I have a few questions for you guys, and comment or PM me with answers.**

**Language. What are you guys comfortable with reading—examples such as sexual jokes (Will and Jace, duh) or swearing.**

**As we get later on in the story, there may be some somewhat heated moments. On a scale of 1-10, what are you guys comfortable with reading? 1 being the scene from Breaking Dawn (not descriptive at all) and 10 being something not quite as detailed as 50 Shades of Grey (WOW!). Please let me know! :)**


	5. The Indescribable Will

The Indescribable "Will"

Part 1~Tessa

**Hey guys! I know it's taken a bit to post this but I've been out of town without internet! Anyway, this chapter I wanted to focus on Will and Tessa developing this... "thing" and they don't know why... But I do. ;)**

**I'm excited for this! So this story will be OC, OOC, and sometimes AU, from time to time. Please R&R! I could use the feedback! Please follow!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own these characters! Dibs to Cassandra Clare. **

Later that evening, Tessa found herself wandering up and down the corridors of the Institute. It wasn't that she was bored and needed to pace to think things over, she'd been doing plenty of that; it was that she was lost. She didn't recognize the hall she was currently walking down, and she was getting more frustrated by the minute.

She rounded a corner and saw on the left side of the hallways a set of tall oak double doors. Curious, she gently opened the door, and upon seeing seemingly endless rows of books, went inside. She looked around in awe; she had never seen so many books before. In the middle of room were several oak picnic tables with benches on both sides. On the wall to her right were several bay seat windows in alcoves with stone benches set beside the bay seat. Seeing them made her want to curl up with a book and read there.

She looked above her. Leading to the second floor was a spiraling staircase in the middle of the room. She couldn't see anything else.

Despite the wonderful sight before her, she was still contemplating her recent encounter with the "Shadowhunter" girls. What had they meant by Will "making progress"? What was so special about her being here?

"Are you lost?" A voice asked from behind her. The voice was clearly amused.

Tessa jumped and turned to see who the voice belonged to. It was Will, who had walked in behind her and was now looking at her with amusement.

She shook her head. "No, I think I've found just where I need to be," she replied. She approached a nearby bookcase, examining its contents, only finding that all the books were behind a metal netting. Each section of books were marked with 4 C's.

"You like reading?" He said from behind her, an incredulous tone obvious in his voice.

She glanced briefly over her shoulder. "Why are all of these books imprisoned? What have they ever done to deserve such torture? And yes, I love reading. It's certainly my greatest passion in life." She stroked the spines of a few novels she didn't recognize.

He chuckled softly. "That's because some of these books contain dangerous things, and we wouldn't want them to fall into the wrong hands," he told her, then added, "What kinds of books do you read?"

Tessa sighed and turned around to face him. "Dangerous? Your world is confusing me more and more."

Will smirked. "You will learn everything about us eventually. Tessa, what books do you like to read?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, but decided to drop the subject. "I read anything and everything. My favorites, though, are the classics."

Will's face brightened immediately, his eyes turning from ocean blue to pansy blue in an instant. "I must admit, Miss Gray, I'm impressed. I enjoy the classics as well."

Tessa raised her eyebrows. "_You_, Will Herondale, _you_ read?"

He stepped closer to her, admiring the books above her head. "Indeed I do. I'm rather old-fashioned, you see, with my obsession with classics from the older days. They fascinate me. Much more entertaining than those Fifty Shades of Grey novels," he admitted, smirking. "Although I will admit I admire Christian Grey's lifestyle, with all the money from his company being the most successful in the country, his mistresses—," he was interrupted.

"I thought only girls read those books," she said, blushing furiously as she recalled what kinds of books they were. "I will say that I did read those, but the classics suit me better, don't you think? And as for being old-fashioned, I wasn't aware that enjoying classic literature was so rare."

It was Will's turn to raise his perfectly sculpted eyebrows. "Classics suiting Theresa Gray better? I'm not so sure about that."

Tessa smiled. "Call me Tessa, please. If you want to get into old-fashioned, take my whole name into account on that topic. Theresa is too much of a mouthful, and sounds old."

Will grinned back at her. "Well then, Tessa, you can start by telling me what your favorite books are by joining me in our glorious selection of fine furniture accompanying the fireplace." He held his arm out to her.

Tessa flushed at the sound of her name rolling off his tongue. It was the hardness of how he pronounced the _T_ and the whisper of the double _S_, and the breathless ending of her name… She cleared her throat and took his arm. She walked with him to the sitting area, where they sat facing each other.

"My favorite story of all has got to be _A Tale of Two Cities_," Tessa said, trying to start the conversation.

Will groaned. "You're one of _those_ people. That book is incredulous."

Tessa's jaw dropped open. "How could you possibly say that? It is probably the most wonderful love story I have ever read."

Will scoffed. "Oh, please. It's ridiculous. Why would men go running around just to wind up with their heads chopped off for love?"

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Sydney Carton was a noble man with a lot of passion. You have no appreciation for classic characters."

He shook his head with laughter. Tessa was mesmerized by the boyish smile that lit up his entire face. Then she frowned.

"Are you making fun of me, William?" she asked, placing her hand over her heart in ridicule.

Will looked at her pointedly, his eyes still shining with laughter. "Laughing? At you? I would _never_," he teased. "No, I'm not laughing particularly _at_ you, more like _because_ of you."

Tessa jumped up, gesturing wildly with her hands. "Oh, help me! God forbid William Herondale is amused by me!" She looked down at Will who was laughing again, and it made her heart leap. There was something about the way he was looking at her… maybe that's what it was. That he was looking _at_ her, not _through_ her.

"Tessa, I believe you may be only slightly crazy," he said through his laughter, then stopping to consider something for a moment. "Now that I think about it, I believe you must be sick with demon pox."

Tessa frowned at him, but still had a playful expression as she sat back down. "What in the world is demon pox?"

Will grinned deviously. "Demon pox is a disease—much like chicken pox—but if touched by a demon who has it, you will get the disease. It is extremely contagious. Eventually it drives the person insane…" his voice trailed off, as if she were to fill in the blanks.

Tessa was giggling. "Oh Will, I think _you_ must be the one who is mad! Please tell me you will never become a doctor!"

Will looked offended. "Tessa, how dare you squash my dreams in such harsh ways? I find that rather offensive!" he exclaimed with mock horror.

Tessa was reminded of a book. "_Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live in dreams?_" she recited.

He cocked his head to the side and looked at her in curiosity. "You know Tennyson?"

She nodded. "Of course I do!"

"You continue to surprise me, Tessa. First you appear in—," he stopped abruptly.

"What?" Tessa asked. "I appear where?"

Will shook his head and stood up, strolling back over to the bookcases. Tessa stayed where she was because she didn't know what she should do. He disappeared momentarily before reappearing and strolling back toward her with a square blue-velvet covered book.

"Take this and read it," he told her, holding it out to her.

She looked at it suspiciously but took it from him, looking at the cover. On the front, stamped in silver script, was _The Shadowhunters Codex_. She looked up at him in bewilderment.

"Will, what is this?"

He shrugged, taking his seat again. "I know you have no idea what kinds of humans we are, and I also know that you're stubborn and refuse to believe anything anyone says. But hopefully you'll read that and you'll understand us and our world."

"Will, I—thank you," she stammered.

"Just be careful with it. It's over six hundred years old and the only copy of it. Any damage done to the book is punishable by death under the Law."

Tessa's jaw dropped, and she tossed into Will's lap. "Don't give it to _me_ then! I don't want to be responsible for something _you _gave me! Why are you laughing at me?"

Will was cracking up. He wiped away imaginary tears. "I'm kidding! God, Tessa, do you believe everything I tell you? Do I strike you as someone who is startlingly trustworthy, or are you just completely naive?" He thrust the book back at her.

Tessa glared at him and snatched the book back. She refused to answer, so instead, she flipped open the book and began reading the first page.

Part 2~Will

Running into Tessa in the library was just the thing Will needed to boost his spirits. There was something about her—something about how she carried herself—that lightened his mood. And it wasn't just how she was when she was talking or laughing; he could feel her gentle aura even when she was in a coma.

Will was enjoying himself greatly, watching her animated gestures and expressions when she spoke of books, and she made him laugh—a rare occasion for him.

And then when she quoted Tennyson… that was it for him. He found it incredibly sexy to hear her passion about books.

He couldn't believe he'd almost told her about the dreams. He couldn't possibly explain those to her, could he? Maybe he should wait until they know each other better. But Will didn't feel as though he needed to wait that long; she made him feel like a friendship with her would be easy and effortless, but he knew it couldn't be, because he himself was neither easy nor effortless.

Now he was watching her read _The Shadowhunters Codex_, and he was enjoying it. He liked watching how her grey eyes flicked back and forth across the pages and how she would occasionally bite her lip. He could tell, though, that her long brown hair was bothering her because she kept blowing it out of her face.

Will leaned forward without thinking through his actions. He tucked the hair behind her ear, the back of his hand brushed her soft cheek. He could see her face turn pink and felt the skin heat up under his hand.

Her eyes flashed up from the book, meeting his blue ones so intensely his breath hitched in his throat, and he could see her draw in a breath. Will marveled at everything about her; from her steel-grey eyes and thick eyelashes fluttering gently as she looked at him, to her pale oval face and small, bowtie lips; from her long, soft brown hair to her tall, curvy body.

Jessamine was wrong. He wasn't only about the flashy women; yes, it had been a phase once, but Will was past that since the dreams started. And he knew she was wrong when he started to lean in. Tessa inclined her head slightly. He knew he shouldn't do it. He knew from the start that it wouldn't be a good idea, yet he couldn't control the instinct he had to press his lips to hers. He stopped about six inches from her face. Blue met grey with hooded eyelids.

Suddenly, Jace burst through the doors. Tessa and Will jumped apart. Jace spotted them as they stood up.

"Jace? What's going on?" Will asked.

"Will, you have to come with me. It's Jem," he panted.

Will's eyes widened. He quickly turned to Tessa. "Tess, I'll get Sophie for you, okay? Wait here until she comes. I have to go." And with that, he and Jace raced out the doors toward Jem.

Sometime later that evening, when it was dark outside, Will sat at his desk. He felt terrible for almost kissing Tessa. He shouldn't have been so upfront; besides, they hardly knew each other.

He sat back in his desk chair, pushing his hands through his thick black hair. He'd been with Jem all afternoon. He'd had another one of his attacks, and Jace and Will had got to him right as he was collapsing in a corridor. They'd gotten him the medicine, but it took a while before Jem's fever went down and he felt like his normal self again. They'd both skipped dinner.

But as he sat at his desk now, he couldn't help but wonder if Tessa would have kissed him back. He realized how ridiculous that thought was and dismissed it.

A rapid knock sounded on his bedroom door, and before he responded, Cecily, Clary, Isabelle, and Emma barged in, shutting and locking the door behind them.

"Cecily, one of these times I'm going to be changing and you're going to walk in, and you will be forever scarred from seeing your naked brother," he said.

Cecily scrunched up her nose. "Ew, Will! Don't put those thoughts in my head! I hope I never see you like that!"

The girls all made themselves comfortable throughout his room.

Will looked wearily at all of them. "I wasn't aware it was my turn to host the slumber party. If I'd known, I would've gone out and gotten all the girly things you guys like."

"Ha-ha, very funny, Will," Emma said. "We're here on official business."

Will ran a hand down his face. This was going to take a while. "Okay, what do you guys want?"

"We want to talk to you about Tessa," Isabelle said, getting straight to the point like she always did.

He groaned. "What about her? She's only been awake for a day. What can you possibly have to talk about?"

"Jace said he saw you two were having a, uh, moment when he came and got you today," Clary said.

"Tessa and I didn't have a moment. We were discussing books."

"Then why did he say you two jumped apart when he came in?" Emma said.

"He told all of you?" Will asked. They nodded and he shook his head.

"He must've had the wrong idea then," Will lied. He turned back to his desk.

"Will, we've all been noticing that her being at the Institute has put you at ease. And up until today, we knew you worried about her, but we could tell you were glad and wanted to meet her officially," Cecily explained.

Will faced them again, all giving them a very serious look. "Tessa and I can never and will never have anything between us. Regardless, I'm more at ease because those horrid nightmares have come to an end and I'm able to sleep."

"Will, she told us that you were changing her bandages today when she woke up. The only way Charlotte would've allowed that was if she thought you were capable of doing so and she was busy. You went and watched her do it every time, didn't you?" Isabelle said.

"Why does that matter? Yes, I watched her and helped her out, but Charlotte actually came to me and requested directly that I go and do it because she was dealing with papers for the Institute."

Clary's eyebrows raised. "And when was the last time you did that for someone?"

Will frowned. He was about to open his mouth when he was interrupted.

"Okay, so never," Emma remarked.

"Look, ladies, I appreciate your concern-,"

"No you don't, and you never will unless you build a bridge and get over what happened to Ella," Cecily snapped. All the girls rose from their places and left his room without another word.

Will hit his desk, hard, with the palm of his hand. He ground his teeth together. No one should _ever_ talk about Ella to him.

He shoved himself away from the desk and grabbed a jacket. He had to get fresh air.

Part 3~Tessa

Tessa hadn't waited too long before Sophie arrived to take her back to her room. Tessa followed the other girl with _The Shadowhunter's Codex_ clutched to her chest. Her mind was reeling.

Had Will nearly kissed her? She would've let him, too, if Jace hadn't burst into the library. She knew it might make things awkward since they hardly knew each other, but Tessa had always had a weakness for British accents and blue eyes.

And every time she looked at him something inside of her lurched.

She didn't know what it was, but it was always there.

And it had started as a dull thumping when she fell into his arms two weeks ago.

Now she sat in her room, attempting to focus on the guide Will had given to her, but failing. She couldn't stop thinking about Will calling her _Tess_. She had never been called Tess before, but it sounded so good coming from his lips.

Speaking of lips...

Suddenly, Tessa heard soft music playing from across the hall. She frowned and considered going across the hallway to see who the source was.

_I'm not reading this thing anyway, so why not?_ She thought. She bookmarked her place and crawled out of bed. She walked across the hall. The door across from her was slightly ajar, and she peered in. She only saw an outline of a person standing at the far window with a violin under his chin. His hair glowed silver in the moonlight.

_Jem._

She pushed the door open all the way and listened to Jem play. It was beautiful, really, soft and melodic. Suddenly, he paused.

"Will, is that you?" he inquired gently.

Tessa stood, frozen. Jem turned, and upon seeing her, smiled widely.

"Tessa, it's nice to see you. Did I wake you?"

She shook her head. "No, I was just reading. My room is across the hall. I was just coming to find the source of the beautiful music. You're very talented."

His smile widened farther. "Thank you, Tessa. I've been practicing for years. I suppose you could say it's a way for me to express me, ah, feelings."

Tessa nodded. "I understand. That's how I am with books. I read all the time."

Jem shook his head. "Will is like that, too. Often times I find him holed up in his room or the library with a book. It's quite amusing, actually. I've never understood that obsession of his, just as much that he will never understand my obsession with the violin."

She smiled, not knowing exactly what to say to that; she changed the topic. "How long have you and Will known each other?"

Jem smiled sadly. "We were both twelve when we met. He had been here for a few months before I showed up."

Tessa tilted her head. "And how old are you guys now?"

"Nineteen, almost twenty."

"So how does this whole thing work? Once you turn a certain age you come to this place to train to rid the world of demons?" She asked, quoting what she had read from the book Will had given her.

"Why don't you come inside and sit down? I can help clarify questions you may have," Jem offered. She nodded and stepped farther inside. Jem closed the door behind her, so she took a seat on a chest at the end of his bed.

"To answer your question, no. It's not a certain age you must be before you come to the Institute to train. Most Shadowhunters are born into their families, and they train at their homes. Some families try to conceal their children from this world. Others, though, have parents who die, or have something tragic happen to them. Those kids are the special cases, and they are the ones who technically _live_ at the Institute, as opposed to visiting and whatnot," he explained.

Tessa put her head in her hands, suddenly feeling terrible. "Is that what has happened to you guys?"

Jem squatted down in front of her, pulling her hands away from her face. "There's no reason to feel bad about this. What's happened has already happened. None of us can stop that. But yes, my parents were murdered by demons. I watched it happen."

Her jaw dropped. "Jem, I'm so—," she started.

"Don't apologize, Tessa. It's not your fault."

"Okay. So now that I know that demons exist, what else should I know? Are there any other mythical creatures I should know about?"

Jem brightened immediately. "Well of course? There's faeries, warlocks, werewolves, vampires…" he trailed off. "Basically all of the myths are true. We refer to them as Downworlders."

Tessa raised her eyebrows, her head swimming. How could she not have seen these things her entire life? "So where do you keep the mummies and zombies? I presume they might be dangerous."

Jem laughed, and it was a soft laugh. "Oh, Tessa, don't be silly. Everyone knows those don't exist!"

Tessa was about to respond when she heard a knocking at Jem's door. Jem frowned before strolling over and opening it. Will stood in the doorway, his hands placed on both sides, leaning forward.

"Jem! Is it a bad time?" he asked.

"Will, are you drunk again?" Jem demanded. Tessa rose from her seat.

"James, don't take it so personally. I had to rid a few, ah, internal conflicts from my mind," Will responded witha light chuckle. Then he spotted Tessa, and his blue eyes darkened.

"James, what is she doing in here?"

Jem glanced back at Tessa. "Oh, Tessa? She had some questions about Shadowhunters, and I figured I could help to answer them."

Will waltzed into the room and collapsed onto Jem's bed on his back. "Tessa, I gave you that book for a reason. It's to answer all your questions for you," he said coldly.

Tessa swallowed, then turned toward the door. "I'm sorry for disturbing you, Jem. Will, I was just leaving."

Jem's silver eyes widened. "No, Tessa, _Will_ was just leaving—," Jem burst into a fit of coughs. They weren't normal coughs, either, they were wet, unhealthy coughs, and it scared Tessa.

Will was by Jem's side instantaneously. "Jem? James, are you okay? Where did you leave it?" he wondered frantically.

Between his coughs, Jem gasped, "On my dresser." He pulled his arm away to speak this, and Tessa caught sight of blood covering his skin. Her eyes widened.

Suddenly Will was pushing her out of the room. "Tessa, you need to leave," he said, sounding completely sober.

Tessa frowned. "Will, what's going on?"

"Nothing you need to concern yourself with." With that, he leaned down and pressed his lips gently to her forehead. "I'll speak with you later. Goodnight, Tess."

He shut the door in her face, leaving her standing there with a dumbfounded expression and wondering why, when he had leaned down, she had smelled no trace of alcohol on him.

**Hello! So I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Sorry it took a while for me to upload… This have been a little… crazy down here in Florida. So please follow and R&R! XOXO!**

**Au revoir!**

**~Caitlyn**


	6. Rejection

**Bonjour my fellow readers! :) I know I've taken longer to upload this than I have other chapters, but here is the next chapter!**

**I'm considering starting a new TID FanFic… an all-human FanFic, but with the characters we all love so much!**

**Also, I don't know how much more of this one I'll keep writing! I haven't been getting any signs that anyone wants me to keep writing so I'm really unsure if this is what you guys want to be reading. :(**

**Like I've said before, please R&R IF YOU WANT ME TO KEEP WRITING THIS! :)**

**Please give me input! :)**

**Anyway: Disclaimer! The characters are CC's, plot is mine.**

**XOXO! Je t'aime. :)**

Chapter 6

Part 1~Tessa

Tessa finally managed to turn herself around and go back to her room across the hall. When she stepped into the bedroom, she was surprised to see Clary, Emma, Isabelle, and Cecily all sitting on her bed. If anyone had looked through her window, they would've thought these girls had known each other for years.

But Tessa didn't know them very well. In fact, she was confused as to why they were gathered there in the first place.

"Is there some sort of secret society meeting that I wasn't informed of?" Tessa inquired.

The girls all raised their heads and grinned.

"Tessa, glad to see you could make it!" Emma squealed.

Tessa narrowed her eyes. "Well, this is, in fact, my room."

Isabelle tossed her long hair over her shoulder and laid down on her stomach, putting her chin into her hands. "We know that. We wanted to get to know you."

Tessa shook her head. "I'm not that interesting of a person. I'm from New York, I read, I just graduated, blah blah blah. What else do you want to know?"

Clary and Isabelle perked up instantly. "You're from New York?" They screeched in unison.

Tessa had to refrain from covering her ears. "Yeah, I am."

"That's where we're from!" Isabelle declared.

Tessa sighed, realizing that the girls weren't going to be leaving for a while. "I could tell you guys were American because you didn't have those funny British accents like the rest of these people do."

"Hey!" Cecily protested. "Well, actually Will and I are Welsh, not English," she admitted.

"You guys are Welsh?" Tessa asked.

Cecily nodded buoyantly. "Yeah, born and raised in Wales. Him and I didn't even know about the Shadowhunter world until we were both ten. We were still really young and didn't fully comprehend what it was. He ran away from home not long after he found out, and came straight here. I didn't come here until I was sixteen, and all that time I hadn't seen Will."

Tessa imagined a younger version of a blue-eyed boy running away… Was it anything like how she had run away? She shuddered inwardly and refused to think of that.

Instead, she looked at Emma. "And you?"

Emma smiled. "I'm from Los Angeles."

Tessa frowned at the lack of information. "So if you guys are all from different places, why live here?"

They all looked at each other, as if contemplating who should tell the story.

Isabelle spoke first. "Well, Clary, Jace, Alec, and I originally lived in the New York Institute, but mine and Alec's parents are gone so often in Idris that the Conclave didn't think it best for a bunch of young Shadowhunters to be living there alone. My parents are the head of that Institute, but they are handing it over to the Dalehearts so they can retire to Idris."

"My mom and her husband live in Idris, and since I was living with the Lightwoods in the New York Institute, I was transferred here with them," Clary said.

"I was in Los Angeles. My parents died in a car accident, and all I had were the Blackthorns. It became too much for me to handle. I had heard stories of Jace's fighting, and I knew I wanted to be the next kick-ass Shadowhunter like him. So I took a journey across the country to find him. When I got to New York, I had been informed that they had all been sent to London, so off I went to London," Emma told Tessa.

Tessa took all the stories in as best as she could.

"We know it's a lot to process, but we want you to know things about us, too. It might make your stay a little more comfortable and easier to adjust," Cecily remarked softly.

"We also want to talk to you about Will. We know we left you on some cliffhangers today and we figured we should clear that up with you," Isabelle said.

"I'm just confused as to why you guys think he's changed since I've been here?" Tessa wondered.

"Will ran away when he was ten because of what happened to our older sister Ella," Cecily began quietly, her eyes getting misty.

"You don't have to tell me this," Tessa said quickly, noticing it was a touchy subject.

Cecily took a few deep breaths. "No, Tessa, you should know this. It might help you understand Will better. Him and all his bitterness."

"What do you mean by his bitterness? He's been a gentleman to me. In fact, right before I came in here, he kissed my forehead outside Jem's room," Tessa admitted.

The four other girls looked at each other in confusion.

"He must have been drunk," Cecily said.

Tessa shook her head. "Actually I don't think he was. He told Jem that he was but when he leaned in to me I didn't smell any alcohol on him at all."

"Not this again," Emma groaned. Tessa was about to ask her what she meant when Cecily spoke up again.

"Anyway, when he was ten, he went exploring my father's office one day when my parents had left the house. You see, my father never let us go anywhere near his office, and we were scolded if we tried. Well, Will has never been known as one to follow instructions, so he went inside. Once he was in there, he began rummaging through my father's stuff in his desk. He kept mumbling about something he overheard our father say. I witnessed the whole thing, for I was standing in the doorway. I kept whispering at him to get out of there before our parents came home. When he didn't find anything, he decided to leave, but he spotted a tall golden-colored wooden box beside one of the bookcases on the surrounding walls. Will went over to it—," Cecily broke off, her voice cracking.

"Cecily, you don't have to keep going," Tessa told her frantically, not wanting the girl to cry. She was never one for tears, and she hardly cried.

The other girl took a deep breath, giving a small smile to her friends, who were all staring at her expectantly. "Will went over to the box, which I learned much later is called a Pyxis. Will has always been a curious person, and you know what they say about those people…"

"Curiosity kills the cat," Tessa whispered.

Cecily nodded. "I got really scared. I had heard my father talking about this box to my mother before, and him saying to her to never let us touch it because it was dangerous. So I ran out of his office to get my sister Ella, who was babysitting us. Her and I ran downstairs to stop Will, but Will had already opened to box. I remember Ella screaming at him to shut it, but it was too late. I remember feeling wind blow through the room, and this huge demon appearing in front of Will. Will was just staring up at this monster in shock and fear. I ran out of the room to go get the phone. I knew I had to tell my parents what was happening. Suddenly I heard Ella scream and I went back to the room, but she was lying on the ground in a pool of her own blood. Will was leaning over her crying and calling out her name. I heard the demon say that whoever loved him would die from here on out, and moments later, Ella died."

"Cecily—," Isabelle started.

"Will has never been the same since. Once the demon fled, he looked angrily at me, shouting at me that he hated me and that I should have stopped him instead of going to get Ella. He told me it was my fault that she was dead. I didn't want to believe she was dead, but he kept screaming at me that she was gone and that she was never coming back. Of course, being ten years old, I kept crying and telling him he didn't mean any of it. Will slapped me, and it knocked me down. He kept calling me a stupid fool. I began to resent him after that. He ran away. My parents mourned over the loss of Ella and Will's disappearance. I grew angry with Will, and I was angry with him for years. But once my parents started blaming everything that had happened to their two other kids on me, I decided to leave, too."

"Cecily, we didn't know the whole story. No one ever told us," Clary admit softly.

Cecily attempted a smile, swallowing back her tears. "We didn't want you guys to know. But I think it's time that everyone knows the whole story of what happened. No more secrets."

Part 2~Will

After Will tended to Jem's health, he strolled back to his room and collapsed on his bed. He was still slightly upset with Cecily for bringing up Ella, but he knew deep inside that she was right. He knew he was leading a life of misery by living with the curse put on him. He wanted to rid himself of the curse, but who could he ask that would summon this demon?

Will shot straight up in his bed. Magnus Bane. Why had he never thought of Magnus before?

Then he remembered Alec and how Alec would disapprove of Magnus putting himself in danger. Will sighed and fell back against his pillows again. So much for _that _idea.

Will pulled his clothes off of his body and through them on the ground on top of his boots. He fell asleep soon thereafter and dreamed of a girl with wavy brown hair and stormy-grey eyes. She was laughing at him as they spun around and around in the middle of a ballroom dance floor.

The next morning, Will was walking down the corridors with his nose buried in _A Tale of Two Cities. _He wasn't too far into it, but he had to admit the book wasn't as bad the second time as it had been the first. Well actually, he'd read it about seven times, and it got better each time. He just pretended to be annoyed with it so no one knew he enjoyed the classic love story.

Will didn't look up as he was walking, and he ran straight into someone. The person he bumped into yelped and he heard something hit the floor. At first he was afraid he'd knocked the person to the floor, but when he saw his own book fall out of his hands and make the same noise, he realized it was the other person's book.

Will raised his eyes, and they landed on the girl before him. Tessa stood inches from him with wide eyes and a playful smile.

"Well, if you're really so desperate to get my attention, Tessa, you could just talk to me rather than so rudely shove me across the hallway," he told her with a grin.

She laughed. "William, I think the demon pox is getting to your head now." She bent down to pick up the books. She frowned when she looked down at them.

Will looked at the novels in her hands. They were the same book. He opened his mouth to justify, but she beat him to it.

"William, you told me you didn't like this book. Were you lying to me?" she looked offended.

Will's eyes widened. "No, Tessa, I didn't lie to you. In fact, I never said I didn't like it, I just said it was ridiculous."

Tessa shook her head, flipping her brown hair over her shoulder. "You win this round, William." She handed his book back and started to walk away.

He turned and gripped her sleeve. "Why are you referring to me by my real name?"

She looked up at him in surprise. "Did you want me to call you by a fake name? Ohh, can I make it up?"

Will smiled. "Tessa, there's no need to be silly now. Are you lost again?"

She blushed. "Yes, I am. I was hoping one of these hallways would lead me back to the dining room somehow."

"You better be careful if you're just wandering around these halls. Some of the doors are dangerous. There's one door that will reveal where we keep trapped demons, for instance. They are quite feisty and might not be too happy to see you. We also have the weapons room, which you must be very careful in. Some of those weapons have a mind of their own, and they're quite sharp last time I checked. And of course, we have a few rooms that open into empty air, used for confusing intruders. But when you're as high as the top of the church, you wouldn't want to accidentally slip—,"

"You're insane, Will! I don't believe you for one second."

Will shrugged. "One of these days I'll have to give you the grand tour, Miss Tessa Gray. But until then, let me escort you to breakfast."

Tessa grinned but took the arm he offered. As they strolled down endless corridors, he began explaining to her some tricks of finding her way around.

Part 3~Tessa

Tessa found that time went by quickly in the Institute. She was able to find her way around much easier thanks to Will's help.

The boys of the Institute—Henry, Will, Jem, Jace, and Alec—had been out most of the past two weeks because they were investigating a current issue involving De Quincey's vampire clan and their interactions with the Pandemonium Club.

Tessa would occasionally see Will when they returned each day, but their conversations were often short. They mostly consisted of discussing the most recent books they'd read, and sometimes heated debates over which characters were more heroic than others. Tessa enjoyed these interactions with Will, but Will sometimes didn't. He made that apparent when his mood would suddenly darken and he would leave abruptly, usually avoiding her for hours or, even worse, days at a time.

She could never understand him; never knew what it was that set him off because it always seemed to be something different every time when it came to Will. Tessa found that she was becoming weary of this behavior from him, but that it was also something she found intriguing to watch. His whole demeanor would change; his eyes would change shades of blue, and his face slackened.

Today, Tessa was sitting in the drawing room beside the fire. Everyone was doing their own thing that day, and the boys weren't expected back for a few hours. She was curled up in one of the plush armchairs reading her most recent favorite book, _The Great Gatsby._ Just as she was getting lost in the romance between Jay and Daisy, the door of the drawing room slowly opened.

Tessa was facing away from the door, but she glanced up briefly, catching Will in her peripheral vision. She lifted her head completely to get a better look at him. He was dressed in a white button-down shirt, the top buttons undone and revealing his collarbone coated in a thin sheen sheet of sweat. His jeans were dark and hung off his hips in just a way that made Tessa think of things she probably shouldn't.

But she knew she had an undeniable attraction to him.

He was just so _damn hot._

"Tess," he breathed.

Tessa swallowed. There it was again; the _Tess _thing. "Oh, Will. If you're looking for Charlotte, she's not in right now. She said she had to speak to Benedict Lightwood about something," she said.

"I'm not looking for Charlotte. I was looking for you," he told her. He stepped farther into the room, closing the door behind him. He stopped right in front of her, kneeling on one knee.

Tessa's eyes followed him. "Well, then what is it? Why would you be looking for me?"

Will shrugged. "I still owe you that grand tour, do I not?"

She smiled at him, marking her spot in her book and closing it. Will's gaze flickered to the book, and the corners of his lips turned up.

"The Great Gatsby? Seems like typical Tessa," he teased.

Tessa shrugged and stood up, stretching. "It's a beautifully written love story."

Will stood up as well. "So… about—,"

"Yes, the tour. Lead the way." She gestured to the door.

They walked for a few minutes before Will stopped abruptly. "This is the kitchen. This is my favorite place."

Tessa walked into the room, recognizing the plump, middle-aged woman sitting in front of a massive kitchen range, reading a book. She and Sophie came in and out of the dining room when serving the inhabitants of the Institute.

"Tessa, this is our cook, Bonnie," Will introduce. Tessa smiled and nodded at Bonnie, complimenting the wonderful meals she'd prepared for them.

Will grinned, approaching a plate of chocolate tarts left out on a table to cool off. He took several of them, shoving one in his mouth and offering one to Tessa.

She shuddered, making a face. "No, thank you. I absolutely _hate_ chocolate."

He shot her a horrified look. "Are you some kind of monster? What human is capable of hating chocolate?"

"Don't worry, Tessa. Will eats anything and _everything_," Bonnie said with a tranquil smile. "Ever since he got here when he was ten years old, that's all he seems to do other than train and fight demons and read. I suppose all the training he does is what keeps him from getting fat."

Tessa laughed at the thought of a fat Will before following him out of the kitchen.

"Nice job on complimenting Bonnie like that. She'll love you now, and it's good to be on her good side. She won't spit in your food, or put rocks in your oatmeal."

She just shook her head in amusement and continued following Will as he gestured animatedly at the things they passed. He'd shown her the music room—filled with harps and a grand old piano in the corner of the room. Though the instruments looked fairly unused, the room was clean and free of dust. He took her to the weapons room, where she met a gentleman around Will's age who went by the name of Thomas. He had a head of brown, curling hair and a friendly face.

"Good evening, William, Tessa," Thomas greeted after Tessa introduced herself.

"Good evening, Thomas," Will replied, flashing him a perfect grin.

Tessa's eyes widened at the fact that Thomas was polishing a set of daggers, and then widened even more at the variety of sharp, brutal weapons before her. Her eyes caught sight of a tall, golden box. Something rang in the back of her mind telling her it was something she should recognize, but she just couldn't recall anything. She walked toward it as Will was asking Thomas for something.

"So, Thomas, has my order of misicord blades arrived yet? I've been running into all kinds of odd demons lately and a narrow blade would be perfect for ones with armored carapaces. Especially—oh, no you don't, Tess." He leaped forward, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her away from the box.

"What is it? I recognize the symbol carved on it," Tessa said, squinting at the snake swallowing its own tail carved into the top of the highly polished wood.

"The symbol is an _ouroboros_—the 'tail devourer.' It's an ancient alchemical symbol meant to represent the different dimensions—meaning out world, which is what is inside the serpent, and the rest of existence is outside of it. The box itself is a Pyxis—,"

Tessa remembered now. "A box that safely contains demons."

Will frowned at Tessa. "How do you know—?"

Tessa swallowed, not wanting to tell him that she knew of the story about him. "I read it in the book you gave me," she lied. She grabbed his hand, practically dragging him out of the weapons room and calling a goodbye to Thomas.

"Tess, are you okay?"

She nodded. "I'm fine. So, where to next?"

Will grinned at her, his dark blue eyes glimmering. Tessa's stomach fluttered and her breathing hitched as her looked at her, like he was the only thing he was looking for. "The least used place in the Institute."

They walked for what seemed like hours, traveling down several flights of stairs. Will came to a halt in front of a tall set of oak doors with thick brass hinges and intricate, brass door handles. Will gripped both handles and pushed the doors opened, revealing a massive ballroom. There was a large skylight in the top of the vaulted ceiling and a thin coat of dust covered the marble floor. In the dusky light shining from the skylight, particles of dust could be seen floating in the air,

Tessa thought it was the most beautiful place, with its marble columns and gold trim. She giggled, running to the middle of the room where the light was streaming through. She spread her arms open wide and began spinning in circles.

Suddenly, she felt a hand on the small of her back, and she stopped, turning right into Will's open arms.

"Would you like to dance with me?" he asked her gently, his eyes matching the dark blue of the sky above.

Tessa flushed, but placed one hand on his shoulder and the other in his open hand. "Yes, I'd love to." She frowned. "But there's no music."

Will smiled. "We can always pretend, can't we?"

Tessa bit her lip. "Well, I suppose, but won't our rhythms be off?"

He shook his head. "No, because speaking in hypothetical terms, our hearts should be beating in time with each other, and we can follow the sound of that."

Tessa thought that was the most romantic thing someone had ever said to her, so she beamed at him. Her heart pounded so loudly in her ears at the close contact of them, but she tightened her grip in her hand.

Will took the lead, waltzing her around the center of the room, spinning, dipping her all over the place. She kept laughing; she'd never danced with someone like this before, and she was greatly enjoying this. Will was grinning at her with the most adorable, boyish smile she'd ever seen him sport.

As he spun her around once, she caught a glimpse of someone standing in the shadows. She was about to stop and say something, but Will caught her waist in both hands, so they were chest to chest. She steadied herself by placing both hands on his shoulders. She found herself staring straight into his deep blue eyes, and all thoughts disappeared when she noticed his eyes focusing on her lips.

"Will," she breathed, not for the sake of asking him something, but just to say it.

His eyes flickered up to hers for a brief moment before he leaned in, his grip tightening on her waist, pulling her closer so they were flush against each other. She could feel the heat of their bodies through jeans and t-shirts. Will gently brushed his lips over hers.

"No more talking, Tess," he whispered. He closed the distance between them, pressing his lips to hers in a bruising kiss.

Tessa gasped, but welcomed the kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck, trying to get closer to him. His lips were warm and soft against hers, and he gently prodded hers apart with the tip of his tongue. Her lips parted, and their tongues danced together just as they had been moments before.

He moaned softly, moving one hand to the nape of her neck, knotting his fingers into her hair. He gently tugged, her neck arching back, breaking the kiss. Will bent down, leaving wet, feather-light kisses down her neck, sucking gently at a certain spot at the base of her neck.

"I have wanted to kiss you so badly," he mumbled, placing a kiss on her lips. He didn't let her go.

Tessa was too focused on how good what he was doing felt. "Will," she whispered, breaking away momentarily. She twisted her fingers into his soft black hair; something she'd wanted to do for a long time.

In this moment, when he was looking at her with a look in his eyes with such desire, she decided she had feelings for Will. Yes, with his bitterness toward certain things, and his love of books. She liked him. Not love, but certainly a spark of something. She took a deep breath.

"I like you, Will," Tessa told him.

His face hardened instantly. He let go of her, disentangling his fingers from her hair and stepping away.

"Tess, you can't like me. You can't have feelings for me," Will told her definitively.

"But I do, Will. I don't know what it is, but I like you, and I'm attracted to you. I know you feel it, too—,"

"No, Tessa, you don't. You can't. And I don't feel what you're feeling," he snapped.

Tessa felt her face redden, and thanked the darkness that he wasn't able to see her. She felt his words like a slap, and, for some reason, tears pricked at her eyes. "Then why did you kiss me?"

He shrugged. "It was an experiment." Her mouth dropped open. "One that will never happen again. God, Tessa, you think someone as attractive as me would be with someone like _you_?" He shook his head and shoved past her, disappearing into the depth of the hallways, the dark swallowing him.

Tessa stood there, staring after him, feeling more embarrassed and pathetic and stupid then she had ever felt. She felt a tear roll down her cheek, something that didn't happen often. She wiped it away frustratedly.

By the time she had gotten over the shock, and had thought of something to say, he was long gone. And she was left standing in the middle of a massive ballroom with light fading quicker than their kiss had, feeling more rejected than she'd ever experienced.

**Hello again! So I'm sorry for the cliffhanger, but I figured I should throw in some Wessa before you guys get too bored with this story.**

**As usual, R&R, and I may be starting a new TID FanFic. Please give me any ideas or suggestions, your preferences for Wessa, Jessa, or Jillessa, or whatever else you guys want to read about!**

**Next chapter hopefully won't end on a cliffhanger.**

**Anyway, xoxo!**

**Bye! :)**


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